Finally getting together for an over-due catch up with C, J and C’s sister Miss T, I was given the task of choosing where to dinner. Since the others did not seem to have any specific preferences I decided to go with Xia Fei, since it is located in quite a convenient location, the environment is comfortable, and having been a few times previously, the food has always maintained a good standard.
A welcome appetiser of pickled papaya was served while we were looking through the menu, and although the papaya used must have been extremely raw since it was quite hard and crunchy, the sweet and sour combination really helped open up the appetite.
First to arrive was our appetisers.
The drunken chicken came in quite a sizeable portion. The meat was tender, not overly fatty and thoroughly infused with the rice wine used as the marinade.
The smoked eggs with roasted honeyed walnuts was good as usual, with a faint smokey aroma evident in the egg whites, while the yolk was softly set with a slow ooze to it. I love honeyed walnuts and cheekily asked the manager if he could give us a more generous serving which he readily agreed to 🙂
Xiao Lung Bao. I did not end up having one, but by looks they were delicately pleated and the skin was translucent enough to see the filling of meat and soup inside.
Conpoy and mustard greens. When this was served, I have to admit it looked quite boring, just greens in broth, nothing special. But I was so wrong. The mustard greens were big and fleshy with a hint of bitterness and the broth it was immersed in was so sweet and flavourful from the absurd amount of conpoy used. Really good~
Tofu dumpling with vegetables. This was something new on their menu and it was also a chef recommended item so I thought it would be worth ordering. I have had this at other Shanghainese restaurants and it is generally much more neatly presented than the one served here. The tofu dumplings were triangular with a ‘skin’ of firm-textured tofu and a filling of mixed vegetables. I found it to be a little bland unfortunately.
Pan-fried dumplings (wor-tip). Arriving as a serving of four, these looked beautiful, uniform in size with a perfectly browned crispy bottom. The filling was juicy, with a good ratio of fatty and lean pork used, but although the bottom of the dumpling was crunchy, the skin did not have the slight stretchy texture that I tend to associate with good wor-tip.
With a group of four girls having dinner, dessert is automatically compulsory :p
Miss T had a bowl of miniature glutinous dumplings in sweet wine soup for herself, while the rest of us shared a pan-fried eight treasure rice and a plate of sesame dumplings rolled in peanut dust (loh sa tong yuen).
Normally if you eat eight treasure rice (steamed), it arrives looking like it was just tipped from a bowl with assorted Chinese dried fruits and nuts adorning the top with a filling of red bean pasted inside. Since we ordered it pan-fried, they flatten it so it ended up looking like a flat rice pancake. I have to admit this was my first time eating eight treasure rice, and I was a little skeptical about trying since it looked quite heavy after a filling meal, but I was so glad I did~ The glutinous rice on the outside was really crunchy, while the inside still retained soft and chewy. It was not overly sweet with the sweetness coming only from the red bean paste and dried fruits. Recommended!
Still thinking about how yummy the eight treasure rice was, I bit into my still warm sesame dumpling and was surprised by how good this dessert was too. The mochi skin was not too thick with a pleasant chewy texture while the liquid sesame paste filling was piping hot, filling the mouth with an intense and fragrant sesame aroma. Really good too~
People always say, good company is what makes a meal most enjoyable, while I agree to this, I always think food plays an important part to it too. Xia Fei really does serve some good quality Shanghainese food and that night, being able to gather together and chat over a good meal was definitely one of life’s simple pleasures. Here’s to many more to come 🙂
Just Something About Me 